The Legacy of good leadership. Acts 20:17-21:1
Farewell sermon on Robin’s (Youth Pastor’s) leaving. WBC 7/8/5pm
Before I flatter you, Robin… I think I ought to show the congregation your TRUE nature and what it is realy like to work with you:
- how hard you have worked and what a ’sacrifice’ it has been (1 - Robin 023.avi)
- the kind of biblical/technical tools LBC equipped you with for Youth Pastorship. Very deep and meaningful. (3 - Robin 025.avi)
- Your Pastroral care. How people follow your example and then you pick them up when they fall (as anyone would!). (4 - Robin 026.avi)
- Your worship leading (132-3210_MVI.AVI)
- And following the ’play’ theme… what you get up to the minute THE BOSS is away. We found two clips from Pre LBC when you worked in the bank. (things1.mpe, things2.mpe)
SADNESS 20:36- 21:1
One of the legacies of good leadership… a successful ministry is this: sadness. Sadness at leaving. "parting is such sweet sorrow"
- seriously!
- It’s unavoidable in a GOOD ministry
- It’s a sign of how God led you both here, has bonded our hearts, has used you.
o It’s a +ve sign. Something that affirms and confirms
It’s like in this passage. And I say this because not ALL ministries are like this!
- Sometimes it’s relief when the pastor goes! (Illustr: WGBC & BBC "I’ve seen x ministers come & go & I’ll see out!"
- And in some sectors pastors are virtually trained to
o Keep their distance
o Keep hold of your hearts (lest you be hurt)
o Not forge friendships
o Be a professional (’never let your congregation see you in your slippers’, Richard Baxter)
What’s the point of that, then? Doing church like that- from either side? Is that Biblical ministry? What God wants? What Paul and the Ephesian Elders did?
- no way!
- Cf : our series on 2nd Corinthians 6:6 "we have opened wide our hearts to you. We are not withholding our affection. open wide your hearts’
- I don’t believe, and won’t do, ministry any other way
The pain in parting is a sign of the rightness of all this. How good it has been. Right.
There are lots of partings in the scripture… and pain with it
- Jacob: when he has to flee to Laban’s
- King David- having to flee because of Absalom
But isn’t it great to know you are both going because of something RIGHT not wrong?
CALL OF GOD 20:22
In this passage Paul didn’t WANT to leave. But life… Christian life isn’t as simple as that!
- we serve the Lord!
- and he had felt the call of God to go elsewhere. To Jerusalem
o he words it "compelled by the Spirit".
o Dunno of that meant ’words across the sky’. It probably just meant the same as you have felt
" "this is right"
" "I don’t know fully what awaits me! (v22)
" (we pray and believe, none of the things Paul mentions. But you never know with Leeds!)
Paul wants to complete the task God has given him. And the call comes to do that
So- I want to encourage you: trust in God in this.
- you have not made this decision lightly ’yes, no’ in the same breath
- You have prayed, sought God, and are now responding to His CALL through OASIS and the BU region
- THIS IS NOT A MERE HUMAN MOVE. This is the call of God. Therefore trust God in this. Have faith and confidence. Be at peace. "I will trust and not be afraid"
o You’re stepping out BUT holding God’s hand
Thought you might appreciate this about God’s leading. I think I got it from Kathryn!
The minister of a Baptist church decided that God was calling the church to a new vision of what it was to be and to do. So at the Elders’ Meeting, he presents the new vision with as much energy, conviction and passion as he could muster. When he had finished and sat down, the chair of the meeting called for a vote. All 14 elders voted against the new vision, with only the minister voting for it.
’Well, pastor, it looks like you will have to think again,’ said the chairman. ’Would you like to close the meeting in prayer?’
So the minister stould up, raised his hand to heaven, and prayed, ’LORD, will you not show these people that this is not MY vision but it is YOUR vision!’
At that moment, the clouds darkened, thunder rolled, and a streak of lightning burst through the window and struck in two the table at which they were sitting, throwing the
minister and all the elders to the ground..
After a moment’s silence, as they all got up and dusted themselves off, the chairman of the elders spoke again.
’Well, that’s fourteen votes to two then.’
Go complete His call! "Finish the race and complete the task the Lord Jesus has given you- the task of testifying to the gospel of God’s grace"
So- open hearts, friendship and call are part of good leadership. But there are other qualities as well
QUALITIES OF A LEADER
Paul says, that he served the Lord with
- humility (v19)
o that’s something we should look for in a leader. Humility. Teachabliity. It’s something we are looking for in new YP.
o This doesn’t mean ’lack of authority’. In fact it adds to it.
James Hunter in his book "The Servant" presents a powerful picture of what it really means to be a leader/servant. He shares: leadership is ultimately rooted in our will. Not forcing our will on others, but demonstrating our will to serve.
There is a big difference between leading through power and leading through authority.
Many people can simply force people to do what they want because they have the power to make them. However, few people like to be forced to do anything. Eventually such "power driven leadership" destroys relationships.
On the other hand, some have the ability to lead through authority. Authority is different than power. Power is something you have and force on people. Authority is something you gain - it’s given to you by the people you lead.
How does one gain authority from those they lead? Only through service and sacrifice. When people see that you have their best interests at heart, when they see you are willing to sacrifice and serve them they will be willing to follow. That’s servant leadership, that’s authority. Contributed by: Paul Newell on www.sermoncentral.com
o glory to God and thanks to you for that. Your humility. (now you’re going to have to do it all again!)
- He says (v19) he was tested. Thanks for allowing me to do that to you!
- He preached. Thank you! Leaders need to have something to convey to ’feed the sheep’! You have fed us. ’Pastured us’. Through word and worship.
o Young and old adults alike
o V27- it says ’he has not hesitated to preach the whole will of God"
" Leaders mustn’t have bits they shy away from (this is a word to me: Revelation!). Thank you for the times you have said things to us that were difficult for you or us
- And here’s the word to all of us who are leaders. In any way: V28. "be shepherds over the flock"
o Lead, feed. Care. ’Pasture’
" Thank you for doing this for us, Robin
o I want to challenge you who are ’leaders’ of any area, here. Are you leading? Do you have a vision for your Area/Advocacy and are you taking it forward- or are you ’waiting for it to happen’?
" I felt ’spoken to’ at end of 2 Cor series. 2CO 13:11 Finally, brothers, good-by. Aim for perfection,
" Are we going for gold?! Expecting and going for the best from ourselves and God?!
" When God blesses us, as He has (Alpha, Mission, Working with old folks)- are we looking to build on it and go with God… go for Gold… aim for THE BEST
" Or are we content. And ’content to let it happen’
Leaders/shepherds should lead out front AND care and encourage and work with others to reach the goal of ’the best’
In the autumn when you see geese heading south for the winter flying along in the "V" formation, you might be interested in knowing what science has discovered about why they fly that way. It has been learned that as each bird flaps its wings, it creates uplift for the bird immediately following. By flying in a "V" formation, the whole flock adds at least 71% greater flying range than if each bird flew on its own.
People who are part of a team and share a common direction get where they are going quicker and easier, because they are travelling on the trust of one another and lift each other up along the way.
Whenever a goose falls out of formation, it suddenly feels the drag and resistance of trying to go through it alone and quickly gets back into formation to take advantage of the power of the flock.
If we have as much sense as a goose, we will stay in formation and share information with those who are headed the same way that we are going.
When the lead goose gets tired, he rotates back in the wing and another goose takes over.
It pays to share leadership and take turns doing hard jobs.
The geese honk from behind to encourage those up front to keep their speed. They honk to each other. (brings a new meaning to the sticker ’honk if you love Jesus’) Words of support and inspiration help energize those on the front line, helping them to keep pace in spite of the day-to-day pressures and fatigue. It is important that our honking be encouraging. Otherwise it’s just - well honking!
Finally, when a goose gets sick or is wounded by a gunshot and falls out, two geese fall out of the formation and follow the injured one down to help and protect him. They stay with him until he is either able to fly or until he is dead, and then they launch out with another formation to catch up with their group.
When one of us is down, it’s up to the others to stand by us in our time of
trouble. If we have the sense of a goose, we will stand by each other when
things get rough. We will stay in formation with those headed where we want to go.
Are you leading an area at the moment? Lead the formation! Go for the goal.
Now. Two final things to us and you, Robin and Susie
KEEP WATCH V28
The challenge is to keep watch over the flock. Robin & Susie- those Young Adults you have shepherded, here, and will do so in Leeds
- but there’s another more important challenge that comes before that:
= "keep watch over yourselves"
- guard yourselves. (not your emotions. Heb 4:7 says ’do not harden your hears’)- but guard your spiritual life and heart.
o How can you lead others unless you are moving on with God yourselves? Robin? Susie? Leaders here?
o How can you feed others if you are not feeding or being fed yourself?
Paul says 1 Cor 9:27 27 No, I beat my body and make it my slave so that after I have preached to others, I myself will not be disqualified for the prize
Watch your spiritual life…. and doctrine closely 1 tim 4:16
There are casualties in this business. All of us… particularly those of us who lead… must make sure our hearts and spiritual lives are growing so
- we can lead others through the Spirit (rather than the flesh)
- we stay the course. Complete the call. Race
Finally:
COMMITTING TO GOD’S GRACE 20:32
We want to commit you both to God’s keeping.
AC 20:32 "Now I commit you to God and to the word of his grace, which can build you up and give you an inheritance among all those who are sanctified.
It’s interesting. He commits them to God
and then doesn’t so much commit them to God to build them up but to "’the word of grace’ which can build you up and give you an inheritance"
- what’s this then? Word of grace?
o It’s not ’the Bible’ as NT not compiled then.
" But it is to the message of the NT. What’s in it. The gospel. The message about God’s grace revealed in Jesus and what leads us forward
It’s knowing and experiencing God’s GRACE… love…acceptance… forgiveness through the good news of Jesus.. that builds us up and keeps us going
- not law. Not drivenness.
- GRACE
We want to commit you to… and for… this message of grace, now.
- and praise God and thank you for the legacy of good leadership you leave
LEADERS TO PRAY FOR ROBIN/SUSIE
